Export all files for a given project as a backup?

Is there a way to export all of the given files for a project onto a separate harddrive? I'm new to Avid (FCP user) and I wanted to see if there was any command that would consolidate all files and all bins for easy backup once a project has been completed.

This would be similar to what you can do in Apple's Motion application. I was hoping there was something similar in AVID.

"Media Copy is a helpful application that reads an Avid AAF or OMF 2.0 file or a Final Cut Pro 7 XML file, figures out which media files are used by that sequence then copies the media to a location you specify. This can be quite handy when your media files are strewn across your system, or you just don't know which media files are represented in your edited sequence."

You can do this just by Consolidating your sequence, with handles...or without if you want the full clips. Don't need the Duck for this.

If you want all of the media in the entire project, then you need to consolidate the footage. Either bin by bin, or make a single bin with copies of all the clips, and consolidate that. Then relink to the footage on the new drive.

Michael - once one has archived a project using mediacopy, how does one get it back? I did a test, copying all bins etc to a portable drive, copied the avid project file to another system, then opened the project on that system. Tried to relink the files and sequences to the portable drive, no go.

The Avid media has to be in the right folder structure at the root of your drive. It goes like this:

DRIVE\Avid MediaFiles\MXF\1\Media - where 1 is any numbered folder (could be 1, 2, 53, 75, etc), and the Avid media goes in it.

Once you have these folders set up and the media in the numbered folder, start Avid and it will scan the drive and reindex the databases. Now when you open your project it should automatically relink. Chances are your media isn't in the right place so Avid simply doesn't see it.

Are you on a PC? If you are, you can used the subst command to make the OS think folders are drives - it's awesome for bringing an archived project back to life for a minor change. Saves you from having to move the footage from its archived folder and moving it back.

Let me know if you're on a PC and I'll find an earlier post about using the subst command.

To use subst, you'll need to open a command prompt and type a simple command. However, your archive folders must be set up right. To do that, set them up like this:

Say your archive hard drive is drive B:. I liked this folder structure - B:/CLIENT01/ProjectA/media. I want Windows to see the ProjectA folder like it's a drive (no spaces can be used either - use underscores). For Avid to then see my media I need to make the Avid media folder structure in the ProjectA folder and put my media in it.

The space in Avid MediaFiles is ok, because we're only telling the OS to look at ProjectA as a drive. You have to pick a drive letter, and it can't be a drive already in use. In this example, we'll use Drive X:

Now to bring our media online without moving it. Open a command prompt. Type exactly this (without quotes) "subst X: B:/CLIENT01/ProjectA" You're telling the OS, substitute drive X: for the folder at B:/CLIENT01/ProjectA. When you open Explorer you'll see a new Drive X: if you did it right. Open that drive and you should see an Avid MediaFiles.

When you launch Avid it will also see the new Drive X:, recognize its folder structure, and scan your drive, index and create new databases if necessary and your project is now online! The best part is you can open that project, do a revision, render and capture/import to Drive X:, thereby archiving as you work.

Let me know if this makes sense or if you run into issues. I used this exclusively when I was on a PC and could bring any project back online in a matter of seconds.

EDIT: I may have the slashes backwards - they were slashes originally but the Cow stripped them when I posted. Not sure why, so you may have to just use a everywhere I used a /